Interview by John Wisniewski for MK ULTRA Magazine
Bedless Bones recently released their tour de force album of moods entitled ‘Mire of Mercury’ via the powerhouse label Metropolis Records, known throughout the world as the Mecca of Industrial, Goth, Darkwave and Post-Punk. Bedless Bones is the dynamic Kadri Sammel, the singer-songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist and abstract artist from Tallinn, Estonia. With Bedless Bones, Kadri has built a delightful concoction of dark experiments with electro colliding with Darkwave, EBM, deep rhythmic beats and industrial soundscapes. We recently managed to chat with the very colorful Kadri to ask her about all things Bedless Bones and beyond.
John Wisniewski: Kadri please tell us something about the new album and videos. What inspired the making of ‘Mire of Mercury’?
Kadri Sammel: Mire is a fertile inner world of a soul, sprouting from alienation, realization, affect. It’s a personal painting with music. It gazes into the darkness of itself, and also relishes in hedonistic psychedelia. Even though introspection has always been a part of my music, I think Mire of Mercury is warmer, more open, bright, since I was in a better place mentally and spiritually, and wanted to give back. To fire up a sensation for the listener and take them on this sonic journey that can feel like a massage, a nudge or a shake at different times.
JW: You manage to mix a number of genres of music into creating the sound of Bedless Bones. Please tell us about how you came upon your sound.
KS: I didn’t come up with a sound, I’m just making music, and it inherently carries the elements I enjoy in music: the floating atmosphere, dim tones and minor chords, ritualistic beats and industrial detours. It would be better for my own good to stick to just one genre, but I can’t seem to do that. I have to listen back to the songs and look for the signifiers of the different genres, just like anyone else would. I do enjoy the analysis and insight of melomaniacs, and am always interested in how others perceive my music.
JW: What were you doing before Bedless Bones began? Were you in other bands previously?
KS: I joined Forgotten Sunrise (outdustrial/deathbeat band fronted by my partner Anders) in 2014 and about the same time, I started making my first demos, some of them ended up as Forgotten Sunrise songs and some as Bedless Bones. I have been singing in choirs my whole childhood, but in early adulthood I was not involved in music. I studied cultural theory and audiovisual media, the latter ignited my passion for photography and film. I also worked in marketing and as a graphic designer for a while.
JW: Could you tell us about any other projects that you are currently working on?
KS: Besides Mire of Mercury, which I released as Bedless Bones, we also released a new album with Forgotten Sunrise in 2023, called elu. And since that’s a part of a trilogy, we’re planning two more albums with FS. I have some live shows coming up with both bands, which is always exciting. I’m also DJing every other month at our Beats From The Vault event series in Tallinn. I feel like doing more remixes and collaborations, so I’m open to offers in that regard.
JW: What is the current music scene like in Estonia?
KS: You know, I live in a small borough with about 1400 inhabitants. I do go to Tallinn to see live shows and I must say there are plenty of events happening. Loads of interesting smaller bands are playing here now that didn’t manage to come around here before. We have new venues for live music (Paavli Kultuurivabrik). Unfortunately, some are closing too (Sveta). I definitely encourage bands to include Estonia (and the Baltics) to their tour calendar, even though the scene and thus the financial perspectives are smaller in numbers. But the gratitude and care you’ll receive is special.
Bandcamp:
https://bedlessbones.bandcamp.com/album/mire-of-mercury
With a background of a decade of singing in choirs; studies in cultural theory, audiovisual media and photography; her personal musical style has transformed into solo project Bedless Bones, which experiments with different noir genres; building bridges and bending borders between darkwave, murky EBM & techno beats and industrial sounds and abstract otherworldly atmosphere akin to IDM. Brought to life through songs that are charged with a multilayered melancholic sound, but also ignite dark dancefloors and evoke familiarity.
Regardless of Bedless Bones’ debut in late 2019 and the following situation with Covid restrictions, the band has already played on festivals such as Wave Gotik Treffen (Germany), Cold Hearted Festival (Germany), Castle Party (Poland) and Kalabalik på Tyrolen (Sweden), also Tallinn Music Week; and shared the stage with New Model Army, Sex Gang Children, She Past Away, Ordo Rosarius Equilibrio, The Horrorist, Void Ov Voices (Attila Csihar), Lebanon Hanover, Kaelan Mikla and others.
Her debut album “Sublime Malaise” was released in 2019 via Cold Transmission Music, followed by a remix album “After Malaise” in 2020, and the sophomore album “Bending The Iron Bough” in 2021.
In addition to that, Kadri is a member of Estonian avantgarde deathbeat/outdustrial band Forgotten Sunrise and the singer of up-and-coming UK/Estonian dystopian industrial band Deathsomnia.
Another alias of Kadri is DJ Dirt Vessel: for the last few years she has been a crucial part of Beats From The Vault, an underground dark music event series in Estonia that has been going on since 1998. In her captivating sets lush with solemn atmospheres and a transcendental effect, she plays dark & industrial techno and EBM, but also darkwave and post-punk; and firmly paved her way as an important member of the scene.